The Long Way Around
by Marymel
Summary: Before Catherine talked to the team, she had to tell one person first. Spoilers for "Ms. Willows Regrets" and "Willows In The Wind". Last chapter up!
1. Chapter 1

**The Long Way Around**

**Before Catherine could tell the team she was leaving, there was someone she had to tell first.**

**I thought it might be interesting to see what Lindsey's reaction would be to what had happened to Catherine. Spoilers for "Ms. Willows Regrets" and "Willows In The Wind."**

**My first chaptered fanfic! Let me know what you think!**

Lindsey Willows wearily sighed as she walked into the apartment she shared on campus with her friends. Between work and school, she was surprised she had any time to sleep. Plopping her purse on the coffee table, she was checked her answering machine for any messages. It had been a few days since she talked to her mom, and she thought about calling her just to talk when her cell phone rang. Glancing at the caller I.D., she smiled when she saw it was her and her mom's friend, Nick Stokes.

"Hey Nick," she answered. "Everything ok?"

"Lindsey, you need to come to Vegas," Nick said.

"Why? What's the matter?" Lindsey began to worry.

"Honey, just get here," Nick replied.

"Has something happened to my mom?"

Nick closed his eyes and wished he could say more, but he had promised he wouldn't.

"Please?" was all he could say.

A thousand thoughts and questions swam through Lindsey's mind. Why would Nick be calling if something hadn't happened to her mother? Was her mother even ok?

"I'll be on the first flight home."

TBC

Please Review!


	2. Chapter 2

When Lindsey's plane touched down at the airport, her grandmother Lily was waiting for her.

"Oh, honey!" Lily exclaimed, embracing the young woman in a hug.

"I've missed you!" Lindsey said. Pulling out of the hug, Lindsey asked, "Where's Mom?"

Lily sighed. "Well, she couldn't make it."

Now Lindsey was really suspicious. "What is going on?"

Gathering Lindsey's carry-on bag, Lily began to explain how Catherine's old friend, Laura Gabriel, had come to Catherine when her husband was being investigated for weapons and various other charges, how Laura had run away from Mark and subsequently killed in an FBI escort. And now Catherine was on the run from Mark Gabriel's henchmen.

Lindsey could hardly believe it. In the nearly two years since she had left her hometown, her mother's beloved team had undergone drastic changes and now her very life was in danger.

Staring out the car window on her way to the lab, Lindsey wondered if her mother was okay.

"Linds?"

Her grandmother's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

"Mmm?"

"You've been very quiet."

"Sorry," Lindsey sighed. "I just-I can't believe this."

After what seemed like hours, they arrived at the Las Vegas Crime Lab. Lindsay practically jumped from the car and quickly walked into the building.

"Hi, Lindsey," said Judy, the receptionist.

Normally Lindsey would ask Judy how she and her family were, but today she was too worried to think about anything else but her mother.

"You must be Lindsey."

Lindsey looked up and saw a tall gentleman approaching the front desk. He must be the new boss, she thought.

"I'm D.B. Russell," he offered her his hand to shake. "I wish we were meeting under better circumstances."

That phrase sent a chill through Lindsey.

"Thank you," she said. "Look, nobody's told me anything..."

"I know," Russell interrupted. "With everything that's been happening here, we wanted to get you here and make sure you were safe."

Lindsey blinked in surprise. "Everything that's been happening? What the hell _has_ been happening?"

Russell smiled. "I think your mom can explain."


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, thanks Busapan for adding this to your alerts!**

**And thank you VegasGirl09 for your sweet review!**

**I started this because I wondered how Catherine would tell Lindsey of her decision to leave. I thought it would be fitting if she told her daughter before telling anyone else.**

**Anyway, mother and daughter meet in this chapter. Hope you all enjoy! **

**Please review!**

After she was given a visitor's ID badge, Lindsey followed Russell to her mom's office. When she saw her mother, she felt a wave of relief and tears crept into her eyes.

Catherine sighed. "Oh, honey!"

"Mom!"

Lindsey couldn't walk over to her mom fast enough. "I've been so worried! Are you okay?" Lindsey tightly embraced her mother, and was stunned to hear her Catherine gasp in obvious pain.

Pulling back, Lindsey gave her mother a worried look.

"Mom?"

"Oh, honey," Catherine began. "I was shot."

Lindsey gasped and her eyes grew wide. "What? Mom, what the hell is going on?"

"Linds..."

"No! Nick calls me and tells me to come home, then I hear of your friend and her husband and how he's involved in weapons or something, and then you tell me you've been shot?"

"Honey..."

"Mom! Tell me what's going on!"

Catherine sighed and sat down. She told her daughter of how Laura had come to her when her husband was being investigated, how he was involved in the murder of Catherine's lawyer and two other people, and how she thought Laura had been killed in an FBI escort.

"I was sucked in," Catherine said with a heavy sigh. "Anyway, it turns out that Laura wasn't really a victim at all. She killed her cousins when they 'hid' her, and she was the one who organized the hit on the FBI escort."

Lindsey listened intently. Her mother was almost killed by someone she thought she could trust. When Catherine finished, Lindsey's eyes widened and she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

Catherine looked at her daughter. Taking Lindsey's hands in hers, she said, "Honey, I am okay."

"I just can't believe this," Lindsey said. "I mean, I know I hadn't seen Laura since I was really little, but I-I just can't...she almost killed you."

Catherine brushed the hair out of her daughter's face. "I know. I can't really believe it either. When I saw her..."

Lindsey shook her head. "Wait, you saw her?"

Catherine nodded. "She's in jail. When I asked her why she did all of those things, she said she knew she could trust me."

Lindsey blinked in surprise. "Wow," she said softly.

"Yeah," Catherine said. "I told her she should have known it would end how it did."

Lindsey sat absorbing all her mother had told her. "So you're ok?"

Catherine smiled and pulled her daughter into a hug. "Yes."

Lindsey couldn't stop tears from rolling down her cheek. When she pulled away, she saw tears etching her mother's face as well.

"Honey," Catherine began, "I am so, so sorry I scared you."

Lindsey sighed. "It's okay. I mean, I was scared, but I'm really glad you're okay."

Catherine sighed. "But that's not the only reason I wanted you to come here."

TBC...


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you VegasGirl09 and Busapan for your support!**

**I still don't own CSI, but I thought this was a good idea for a story. I wondered what Lindsey's reaction would be to her mom's decision!**

**Anyway, please read and review!**

New concern etched Lindsey's face. "What's going on."

Catherine smiled and said, "Something's happened."

Seeing her daughter look more concerned, Catherine said, "Oh, nothing's wrong! But I am...how shall I put this?"

Lindsey frustratedly sighed. "How about tell me the truth?"

Catherine chuckled, knowing her daughter was right. "Well, with this whole case, I've been working really closely with the FBI."

Lindsey nodded, waiting for her mom to continue.

"As you know," Catherine began, "a few months ago, I got demoted."

Lindsey grimaced, knowing how difficult that was on her mom.

"Well," Catherine continued, "with this case, I've been working very closely with the FBI. And it's been really...eye-opening. They value my work and my expertise, and they are very appreciative with how I helped with the whole case."

Lindsey just sat there listening to her mother.

Sighing, Catherine looked her daughter in the eyes and said, "The FBI has offered me a job."

Lindsey couldn't hold back a small laugh. "Really?"

Catherine nodded. "They've offered me a job in Quantico."

Lindsey blinked in surprise. "Wow," was all she could think of to say.

Catherine chuckled. "Yeah. They're really great people, the ones I've worked with. I feel like I do when I first started here. Like my opinion's important. Like I'm actually doing something to help and I can advance and really...I don't know make something of myself."

Lindsey and Catherine chuckled at her last statement. "But," Lindsey began, "your job here...you've worked so hard..."

"I know," Catherine sighed. She remembered how this place was her second home. She thought about how she first started and worked her way up to assistant supervisor. Her friendships with her colleagues, working alongside Gil Grissom, and everything she had been through with the team seemed to cross her mind all at once. And she thought about how Lindsey had practically grown up here. How she played Go Fish in the lab with Greg when he was still the DNA tech. How Nick doted on her like she was one of his nieces. How Warrick seemed to know just what flavor of ice cream Lindsey needed if her mother was having a rough case. How Sara had been with her the night Eddie was killed. And how Grissom showed a then 3-year-old Lindsey his fetal pig in a jar and how Lindsey's eyes grew wide and the young girl ran to her crying.

Lindsey smiled at her mother, who seemed to be lost in thought. "Mom?"

Catherine sighed. "Yes?"

"What are you going to do?"

Catherine smiled and said, "I'm taking it."


	5. Chapter 5

**Well, here's the last chapter. I wish I could have written more, but I hope I captured Catherine's feelings and Lindsey's as well.**

**Thank you very, very much to VegasGirl09 and RosePetal7 for your sweet reviews! They've really been a great support! And thank you to everyone who's read this story. I hope you enjoyed it. **

**Please Review!**

**I still do not own CSI**

Lindsey's eyes widened as she took in the words her mother had just said. "Really?"

Catherine sighed. "This was not something I just decided overnight. This place, these people have been my home."

Lindsey nodded. "But you have a better chance with the feds?"

Catherine smirked when her daughter used the word 'feds'. Smiling, she replied, "Yeah, I do. I mean, I know I have to prove myself to a whole new team, but I know I can do it. I've already done so much in this investigation. They know I can do what I say I can do."

Lindsey nodded. "So you're taking it?"

"Yes, I am."

Lindsey sighed. She had grown up with everyone at the lab, and considered Nick, Greg and Sara family. This place was more than just her mother's job-it was a part of who Catherine was.

Catherine looked over her daughter, trying to gauge the young woman's reaction. After a few moments of silence, Lindsey said, "Wow."

Catherine nervously glanced at her daughter. "Wow?"

Lindsey looked at her mother and smiled. "So you're going to work with the FBI?"

Catherine laughed and hugged her daughter. Lindsey laughed too.

"Yeah," Catherine said. "Yeah, I am."

Pulling out of the hug, Lindsey asked, "But what about the Grandma? And the house?"

"I haven't told her yet," Catherine began. "And I'm putting the house on the market."

Lindsey sighed. Her mother was moving on, just as she had done months earlier when she left for college.

"There is one thing more," Catherine said. Lindsey furrowed her eyebrows in question.

"I haven't told the team yet. I'd like to be the one to tell them."

Lindsey understood and nodded. After all, they were her family.

"So when do you leave for Quantico?"

"Tomorrow morning," Catherine told her daughter.

Lindsey blinked in surprise. "So soon?"

Catherine nodded. "Yeah, that's why I wanted to tell Russell and the team right away."

Lindsey sighed. "What can I do?"

Catherine smiled and wondered when her daughter had become so...grown up.

"Well, your Grandmother's going to take me to the airport tomorrow, and I'm going to have dinner with Morgan and..."

"Who?"

"Oh, you haven't met Morgan Brody yet." Lindsey nodded. "Did you ever meet Mr. Ecklie's daughter?"

Lindsey thought for a minute. "Maybe, when I was really little."

"Anyway, she's a CSI now and part of the team. I'm going to take her for dinner later."

"Oh, okay."

Catherine sighed and put her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "I wanted you to be here so it wouldn't feel like...I don't know, like I was just up and leaving with no real reason."

Lindsey smiled. "I understand, Mom. I just can't believe you're really leaving. I mean, I know you've been through a lot here in the last couple of years, but still..."

Catherine sighed and smiled sadly. "I know. But I really feel like this is the right time to make a change."

Just then, Russell knocked on Catherine's office door. "You ladies okay in here?"

Both Lindsey and Catherine smiled. "Yeah," Lindsey said.

"Hey, Russell, can I talk to you?" Catherine asked.

"Sure."

Lindsey sighed. "I guess I'll head to the house." Standing, she walked over to her mother's boss and shook his hand once again. "It was really nice meeting you, sir."

Russell smiled. "Please, call me D.B., and it was nice meeting you, too. Your mom is very proud of you. Wish it could have been under nicer circumstances."

Catherine cleared her throat and walked over to the two. "So I'll see you later, Linds?"

Lindsey smiled. "Yeah, Grandma can take me over to her house, so I guess we can have breakfast tomorrow morning."

"Ok," Catherine said, embracing her daughter in a hug. "Love you."

"I love you, too," Lindsey said. Pulling away, she looked at her mother who had endured so much, particularly in the last few years.

"I'm really proud of you."

Catherine sighed and found herself fighting tears. "Thank you."

As Lindsey left, she passed the break room where the team and Captain Brass had gathered to talk about the case. She smiled and waved at everyone.

Catherine watched her daughter leave before joining Russell in his office to talk about her decision. She was moving on to a new job and a new team. But watching her daughter hug Nick, Greg, Jim and Sara, she knew she and Lindsey would be okay. She may have been moving on to a new team, but this team...her _family_...would stay with her forever.

The End.


End file.
